DEI Letter in Naples Daily News
Collier League | Published on 3/31/2022
Letter to the Editor, Naples Daily News
by Ida Margolis, DEI Committee Member
I hope that not only friends of Pastor Lonnie Mills read the obituary and article about him, but that all people could read about the loss of this special man. As noted. Pastor Mills used the word love often and demonstrated love by his inclusive nature. Pastor Mills helped me by participating in programs for the local Holocaust Museum & Cohen Education Center and for Temple Shalom. Everyone in attendance recognized the kindness and graciousness of Pastor Mills.
Because of his inclusive nature Pastor Mills did not label people. I see this so often in the letters to the editor, in the news and in conversations. As soon as labels are given to people, it creates an"us" versus "them" dynamic, and even seems to allow people to treat others poorly. This can lead to hurtful verbal acts and even horrible acts of violence. So what can be done about the labels and hurtful speech around us? Start with kindness. Author, Holocaust survivor and Nobel laureate Elie Wiesel said that "unexpected kindness is the most powerful, least costly, and most underrated agent of human change.
Martin Luther King, Jr., another Nobel Prize winner, civil rights activist and minister, said "The time is always right to do what is right." Next time you want to use a label, just stop and think of Pastor Mills, and instead perform an act of kindness and do what is right, and help make the world a better place just as Pastor Mills did.